Charisma ... Character ... Leadership - Thoughts And Observations

“The 3Cs of Leadership: Character - the compassionate morality to protect others rights. Charisma - an inspiring personality which gives hope. Competency - with unquenchable thirst for knowledge.”  Husam Wafaei – Syrian/Canadian academic, professor, research methodology, ethical leadership, education and training development.

"Throw away those books and cassettes on inspirational leadership. Send those consultants packing. Know your job, set a good example for the people under you and put results over politics. That's all the charisma you'll really need to succeed."  Dyan Machan – U.S. film producer.

“Charisma has three essential components: presence, power, and warmth.   Being present—paying attention to what’s going on rather than being caught up in your thoughts—can yield immense rewards. When you exhibit presence, those around you feel listened to, respected, and valued.   Because your body language telegraphs your internal state to those around you, in order to be charismatic—to exhibit presence, power, and warmth—you must display charismatic body language.   Because your mind can’t tell the difference between imagination and reality, by creating a charismatic internal state your body language will authentically display charisma.   In terms of achieving charisma, your internal state is critical. Get the internal state right, and the right charismatic behaviors and body language will pour forth automatically.”  Olivia Fox Cabane – French/U.S. author, co-founder of The KindEarth.Tech Foundation, former Director of Innovative Leadership for Stanford University 's student accelerator, StartX.

“How would you rate yourself when it comes to charisma? Are other people naturally attracted to you? Are you well liked? If not, you may possess one of these roadblocks to charisma: Pride. Nobody wants to follow a leader who thinks he is better than everyone else. Insecurity. If you are uncomfortable with who you are, others will be too. Moodiness. If people never know what to expect from you, they stop expecting anything. Perfectionism. People respect the desire for excellence, but dread totally unrealistic expectations. Cynicism. People don’t want to be rained on by someone who sees a cloud around every silver lining. If you can stay away from these qualities, you can cultivate charisma. … Using the word CHARISMA as an acrostic, we can define the outstanding characteristics of charismatic people: Concern, Help, Action, Results, Influence, Sensitivity,  Motivation, Affirmation.” John C. Maxwell – U.S. leadership consultant, author, wrote The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader: Becoming the Person Others Will Want to Follow.

“I have been lucky to meet some incredible people who do not possess what you would traditionally class as power, but through their charisma, passion, and strength of character, they are able to achieve things that 'richer or more powerful people' could only dream of.” Holly Branson – U.K. marketing executive, chief purpose and vision officer at Virgin , chair of Virgin Unite, founder and trustee of Big Change.

“When you put together deep knowledge about a subject that intensely matters to you, charisma happens. You gain courage to share your passion, and when you do that, folks follow.”  Jerry Porras – U.S. academic, american organizational theorist at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business . 

“Charisma without character is postponed calamity.”  Peter Ajisafe – Nigerian author.

“Leadership is not just about charisma or the ability to make persuasive (or ludicrous) speeches. It’s about character, experience, and skill—three pillars that form the foundation of someone truly capable of guiding others.”  Carlos Wallace – U.S. author.

“The various ways of creating a culture of innovation that we’ve talked about so far are greatly influenced by the leaders at the top. Leaders can’t dictate culture, but they can nurture it. They can generate the right conditions for creativity and innovation. Metaphorically, they can provide the heat and light and moisture and nutrients for a creative culture to blossom and grow. They can focus the best efforts of talented individuals to build innovative, successful groups. … This trait goes far beyond mere charisma or even intelligence. Certain leaders have a knack for nurturing people around them in a way that enables them to be at their best.” Tom Kelley – U.S. marketing executive, author.

“The key to developing charisma: Be more concerned about making others feel good about themselves than you are in making them feel good about you.”  John C. Maxwell – U.S. leadership consultant, author, wrote Be a People Person: Effective Leadership Through Effective Relationships.

“The crucial test of charisma and expertise can be found not only in communicative strength and persuasiveness, but also in the responses of organizational subordinates.” Franz Nicolay – U.S. musician, best known as the keyboardist and pianist for the indie rock band the Hold Steady.

“Inspiring leadership communication is not about great oratory or great charisma; rather it is about getting others to believe in themselves and believe in your cause, and then achieve more than they thought was possible.”  Kevin Murray – U.K. author.

“... the real secret to charisma is making each person you meet feel that they have your complete attention when they speak to you.”  Nick Vujicic – Serbian/Australian/U.S. motivational speaker.

“Inverse charisma. What a wonderful turn of phrase to capture the magnetic quality of a great listener. Think about how rare that kind of listening is.”  Adam M. Grant – U.S. organizational psychologist. Wharton professor studying motivation, generosity, and potential. 

“A biographer of the novelist E. M. Forster wrote, “To speak to him was to be seduced by an inverse charisma, a sense of being listened to with such intensity that you had to be your most honest, sharpest, and best self.” Imagine how good it would be to be that guy.”  David Brooks - Canadian-born/U.S. author, political and cultural commentator. 

“Being charismatic does not depend on how much time you have but on how fully present you are in each interaction. The ability to be fully present makes you stand out from the crowd; it makes you memorable. When you’re fully present, even a five-minute conversation can create a “wow” effect, as well as an emotional connection. The people you’re with feel that they have your full attention and that they are the most important thing in the world to you at that moment." Olivia Fox Cabane – French/U.S. author, co-founder of The KindEarth.Tech Foundation, former Director of Innovative Leadership for Stanford University's student accelerator, StartX.

“Be interested, not interesting.”  Dale Carnegie - U.S. writer, teacher.

‘Charisma is not so much getting people to like you as getting people to like themselves when you're around.” Robert Breault - U.S. operatic singer.

“Self-confident people don’t make their self-esteem, self-image, happiness, or self-confidence dependent on another person’s approval, validation, or acceptance.”  Susan C. Young – U.S. motivational speaker, trainer.

“... according to a famous study by the influential management theorist Jim Collins, many of the best performing companies of the late twentieth century were run by what he calls "Level 5 Leaders." These exceptional CEOs were known not for their flash or charisma but for extreme humility coupled with intense professional will.”  Susan Cain – U.S. author.

“There is no substitute for discipline. No amount of intellectual prowess or personal charisma can make up for an inability to identify a few simple things and stick to them over time.”  Patrick Lencioni – U.S. author.

“In leadership cleverness is not as important as content, that charisma and dash are not as vital as character and doctrine.”  Neal A. Maxwell – U.S. academic, religious leader.

"Charisma is the result of effective leadership, not the other way around."  Warren Bennis -  U.S. organizational consultant, author, and Burt Nanus – U.S. academic.

“Never be impressed with charisma. Look for character.”  Rick Warren – U.S. author.

“It's true that charisma can make a person stand out for a moment, but character sets a person apart for a lifetime.”   John C. Maxwell – U.S. leadership consultant, author, wrote The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader: Becoming the Person Others Will Want to Follow.

“Executive presence has to do with the whole of the person. It's much more than presentation skill, charisma or savvy. It shows up in three dimensions of the leader's persona - character, substance and style. It's now clear that for a leader to influence and make an impact, it is important for them to also develop qualities such as authenticity, integrity, resonance, practical wisdom, and vision.”   Suzanne Bates - U.S. business consultant.

“Over time, is it easier or harder to sustain your influence within your organization? With charisma alone, influence becomes increasingly more difficult to sustain. With character, as time passes, influence builds and requires less work to sustain.”  John C. Maxwell – U.S. leadership consultant, author, wrote The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader: Becoming the Person Others Will Want to Follow.

“Leadership is not about personality, possessions, or charisma, but all about who you are as a person. I used to believe that leadership was about style but now I know that leadership is about substance, namely character.”  James Hunter – U.S. leadership/training consultant.

“History is rich with adventurous men, long on charisma, with a highly developed instinct for their own interests, who have pursued personal power - bypassing parliaments and constitutions, distributing favors to their minions, and conflating their own desires with the interests of the community.”  Umberto Eco – Italian author, novelist, political/social commentator.

“The greatest of all faults in a politician, and in any leader, is the failure to recognize that charisma has nothing to do with ability, excellence, or goodness. In fact, charisma enables far more the evils of the universe than great and worthy accomplishments, Give me pedestrian accomplishments over charisma any day.”  L.E. Modesitt Jr. – U.S. author.

“… if a person leads with charm and charisma and plenty of confidence, sit up straight and pay cautious attention. Make sure that there is empathy, that entitlement is not at play, that the person is genuine, that there is respect and, frankly, that he or she has the goods to back it up. Don’t let the charisma and charm blind you and stop you from looking deeper for the rest of it. … Most narcissistic people start their game strong and, as noted earlier, they are overflowing with charm, charisma, and confidence—the three seductive Cs. I maintain my assertion that these traits should leave you very concerned because, in some ways, they are distractors. They can pull you away from digging deeper and understanding the other person or really paying attention to the core qualities that make for a strong relationship, including respect, empathy, compromise, reciprocity, and kindness.  … The emptiness of the narcissist often means that they are only focused on whatever is useful or interesting to them at the moment. … It’s not really a long game to them, and when the next interesting issue comes up, they attend to that. … superficiality results in inconsistency, and emotions for the narcissistic person range from intense to detached on a regular basis. This vacillation between intensity and detachment can be observed in the narcissist’s relationships with people (acquaintances, friends, family, and partners), work, and experiences. A healthy relationship should feel like a safe harbor in your life. Life throws us enough curve balls in the shape of money problems, work issues, medical issues, household issues, and even the weather. Sadly, a relationship with a narcissist can be one more source of chaos in your life, rather than a place of comfort and consistency.”  Ramani S. Durvasula  - U.S. clinical psychologist.

“Notwithstanding his occasional illusions of omnipotence, the narcissist depends on others to validate his self-esteem. He cannot live without an admiring audience. His apparent freedom from family ties and institutional constraints does not free him to stand alone or to glory in his individuality. On the contrary, it contributes to his insecurity, which he can overcome only by seeing his “grandiose self” reflected in the attentions of others, or by attaching himself to those who radiate celebrity, power, and charisma. For the narcissist, the world is a mirror, whereas the rugged individualist saw it as an empty wilderness to be shaped to his own design.”  Christopher Lasch – U.S. historian.

“Most people think of leaders as being these outgoing, very visible, and charismatic people, which I find to be a very narrow perception. The key challenge for managers today is to get beyond the surface of your colleagues. You might just find that you have introverts embedded within your organization who are natural-born leaders.”  Douglas Conant – U.S. business executive, was CEO of the Campbell Soup Company.

“Research has shown that one's level of intelligence is the single most predictive component of professional success - better than any other ability, trait, or even job experience. Yet, too often, employees are selected because of their likeability, presence, or charisma.”   Justin Menkes – U.S. business consultant, forcusing on executive assessment with the executive search firm Spencer Stuart .

“I’ve known entrepreneurs who were not great salespeople, or didn’t know how to code, or were not particularly charismatic leaders. But I don’t know of any entrepreneurs who have achieved any level of success without persistence and determination.” Harvey Mackay – U.S. business executive, author.

“Here’s the bottom line on charisma. You don’t have to be gorgeous, a genius, or a masterful orator to possess presence and to connect with others. You just need to be positive, believe in yourself, and focus on others.”  John C. Maxwell – U.S. leadership consultant, author, wrote Everyone Communicates, Few Connect: What the Most Effective People Do Differently.

“No amount of talents, skills or charisma can sustain us the way integrity, character & attitude does.”  Sidney Mohede – U.S. songwriter, pastor.

“Charisma will sustain a relationship only in the way that strong coffee first thing in the morning will sustain a career.”  Elliot Perlman -  Australian author, barrister.

“One of the most charismatic images in the world is that defiant walk of a determined mind on its way to its goal!”  Mehmet Murat ildan – Turkish playwright.

“The moment you think you have charisma, you are finished.”  Riccardo Muti – Italian symphonic/opera conductor.